[Federal Register Volume 74, Number 94 (Monday, May 18, 2009)]
[Notices]
[Pages 23226-23237]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E9-11542]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Office of the Secretary of Transportation
[Docket No. OST-2009-0115]
Interim Notice of Funding Availability for Supplemental
Discretionary Grants for Capital Investments in Surface Transportation
Infrastructure Under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and
Request for Comments on Grant Criteria
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary of Transportation (``OST''), DOT.
ACTION: Interim Notice of Funding Availability, Request for Comments on
Grant Criteria.
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SUMMARY: On February 17, 2009, the President of the United States
signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (the
``Recovery Act'') to, among other purposes, (1) preserve and create
jobs and promote economic recovery, (2) invest in transportation
infrastructure that will provide long-term economic benefits, and (3)
assist those most affected by the current economic downturn. The
Recovery Act appropriated $1.5 billion of discretionary grant funds to
be awarded by the Department of Transportation (the ``Department'') for
capital investments in surface transportation infrastructure. The
Department is referring to these grants as ``Grants for Transportation
Investment Generating Economic Recovery'' or ``TIGER
[[Page 23227]]
Discretionary Grants.'' This notice requests that applications for
TIGER Discretionary Grants be submitted by September 15, 2009, from
State and local governments, including U.S. territories, tribal
governments, transit agencies, port authorities, other political
subdivisions of State or local governments, and multi-State or multi-
jurisdictional applicants (``Eligible Applicants''). The funds provided
by TIGER Discretionary Grants (``Grant Funds'') will be awarded on a
competitive basis to projects that have a significant impact on the
Nation, a metropolitan area, or a region.
The Recovery Act allows for up to $200 million of the $1.5 billion
to be used to pay the subsidy and administrative costs of the
Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act of 1998
(``TIFIA'') program, a Federal credit assistance program, if it would
further the purposes of the TIGER Discretionary Grants program. The
Department is referring to these payments as ``TIGER TIFIA Payments.''
The Department estimates that $200 million of TIGER TIFIA Payments
could support approximately $2 billion in TIFIA credit assistance.
Applicants for TIGER TIFIA Payments will be required to submit an
application pursuant to this notice and a separate TIFIA loan
application. Additional details are included below in Section VI (TIGER
TIFIA Payments). Unless otherwise noted, or the context requires
otherwise, references in this notice to TIGER Discretionary Grants
include TIGER TIFIA Payments.
This notice announces the availability of funding for TIGER
Discretionary Grants, project selection criteria, application
requirements and the deadline for submitting applications. However,
because this is a new program, this notice also requests comments on
the proposed selection criteria and guidance for awarding TIGER
Discretionary Grants. The Department will take all comments into
consideration and may publish a supplemental notice revising some
elements of this notice. If the Department determines that no
substantive changes need to be made in this notice, the Department will
respond to all comments when it publishes a Federal Register notice
announcing the successful applications. If substantive changes are
necessary, the Department will publish a supplemental Federal Register
notice and request for applications by June 17, 2009. Depending on the
nature of the comments and the number of initial applications received,
the Department may award funds based on the initial applications
without publishing a supplemental notice. In addition, in the event
that this solicitation does not result in the award and obligation of
all available funds, the Department may decide to publish an additional
solicitation.
DATES: Comments must be received by June 1, 2009. Late-filed comments
will be considered to the extent practicable. Complete applications for
TIGER Discretionary Grants must be submitted by September 15, 2009 (the
``Application Deadline''). Due to the need to expedite the grant award
process to meet the requirements and purposes of the Recovery Act, the
Department will evaluate all applications and announce the projects
that have been selected to receive Grant Funds as soon as possible
after the Application Deadline, but no later than February 17, 2010. In
addition, in the event that this solicitation does not result in the
award and obligation of all available funds, the Department may decide
to publish an additional solicitation.
ADDRESSES: For Comments: You must include the agency name (Office of
the Secretary of Transportation) and the docket number [OST-2009-0115]
with your comments. To ensure your comments are not entered into the
docket more than once, please submit comments, identified by the docket
number [OST-2009-0115], by only one of the following methods:
Web site: The U.S. Government electronic docket site is
www.regulations.gov. Go to this Web site and follow the instructions
for submitting comments into docket number [OST-2009-0115];
Fax: Telefax comments to [OST-2009-0115];
Mail: Mail your comments to U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200
New Jersey Avenue, SE., Docket Operations, M-30, Room W12-140,
Washington, DC 20590; or
Hand Delivery: Bring your comments to the U.S. Department of
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE., Docket Operations, M-30,
West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590, between
9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
Instructions for submitting comments: You must include the agency
name (Office of the Secretary of Transportation) and Docket number
[OST-2009-0115] for this notice at the beginning of your comments. You
should submit two copies of your comments if you submit them by mail or
courier. For confirmation that the Office of the Secretary of
Transportation, has received your comments, you must include a self-
addressed stamped postcard. Note that all comments received will be
posted without change to www.regulations.gov, including any personal
information provided, and will be available to Internet users. You may
review the Department's complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal
Register published April 11, 2000, (65 FR 19477), or you may visit
www.regulations.gov.
For Applications: Applications must be submitted to the TIGER
Discretionary Grants program manager electronically via e-mail at
[email protected]. Applicants should receive a confirmation e-mail,
but are advised to request a return receipt to confirm transmission.
Only applications received via e-mail as provided above shall be deemed
properly filed.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For further information concerning
this notice please contact the TIGER Discretionary Grants program
manager via e-mail at [email protected]. A TDD is available at 202-
366-7687.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In addition to announcing funding
availability, project selection criteria, application requirements and
the deadline for submitting applications, this notice also requests
comments on the proposed selection criteria and guidance for awarding
TIGER Discretionary Grants. The Department will take all comments into
consideration and may publish a supplemental notice revising some
elements of this notice. If the Department determines that no
substantive changes need to be made in this notice, the Department will
respond to all comments when it publishes a Federal Register notice
announcing the successful applications. If substantive changes are
necessary, the Department will publish a supplemental Federal Register
notice and request for applications by June 17, 2009. Depending on the
nature of the comments and the number of initial applications received,
the Department may award funds based on the initial applications
without publishing a supplemental notice. In addition, in the event
that this solicitation does not result in the award and obligation of
all available funds, the Department may decide to publish an additional
solicitation.
Table of Contents
I. Background
II. Selection Criteria and Guidance on Application of Selection
Criteria
[[Page 23228]]
III. Evaluation and Selection Process
IV. Grant Administration
V. Waiver of Minimum Grant Size Requirement
VI. TIGER TIFIA Payments
VII. Contents of Application
VIII. Project Benefits
IX. Reporting Requirements
X. Certification Requirements
XI. Questions and Clarifications
I. Background
On February 17, 2009, the President of the United States signed the
Recovery Act in order to, among other purposes, (1) preserve and create
jobs and promote economic recovery, (2) invest in transportation and
other infrastructure that will provide long-term economic benefits, and
(3) assist those most affected by the current economic downturn.
The Recovery Act appropriated $1.5 billion of supplemental
discretionary grant funding for TIGER Discretionary Grants. These funds
are available for obligation to Eligible Applicants until September 30,
2011. Pursuant to the Recovery Act, TIGER Discretionary Grants are to
be awarded on a competitive basis to projects that have a significant
impact on the Nation, a metropolitan area, or a region.
Projects that are eligible for TIGER Discretionary Grants under the
Recovery Act (``Eligible Projects'') include, but are not limited to:
(1) Highway or bridge projects eligible under title 23, United States
Code, including interstate rehabilitation, improvements to the rural
collector road system, the reconstruction of overpasses and
interchanges, bridge replacements, seismic retrofit projects for
bridges, and road realignments; (2) public transportation projects
eligible under chapter 53 of title 49, United States Code, including
investments in projects participating in the New Starts or Small Starts
programs that will expedite the completion of those projects and their
entry into revenue service; (3) passenger and freight rail
transportation projects; and (4) port infrastructure investments,
including projects that connect ports to other modes of transportation
and improve the efficiency of freight movement. Federal wage rate
requirements included in subchapter IV of chapter 31 of title 40,
United States Code, apply to all projects receiving funds.
The Recovery Act specifies that grants funded under the program may
be no less than $20 million and no greater than $300 million. However,
the Recovery Act gives the Department discretion to waive the $20
million minimum grant size for the purpose of funding significant
projects in smaller cities, regions, or States (``Smaller Projects'').
The term ``grant'' in this provision of the Recovery Act does not
include TIGER TIFIA Payments.
Pursuant to the Recovery Act, no more than 20 percent of the funds
made available under this program may be awarded to projects in a
single State. The Department must take measures to ensure an equitable
geographic distribution of funds and an appropriate balance in
addressing the needs of urban and rural communities. TIGER
Discretionary Grants may be used for up to 100 percent of project
costs, but priority must be given to projects for which Federal funding
is required to complete an overall financing package that includes non-
Federal sources of funds. Priority must also be given to projects that
can be completed by February 17, 2012.
The Recovery Act permits up to $200 million of the $1.5 billion
appropriated to be used for TIGER TIFIA Payments at the Department's
discretion if it would further the purposes of the TIGER Discretionary
Grants program. TIFIA is a Federal credit assistance program that
provides secured loans, loan guarantees and lines of credit to
borrowers for up to 33 percent of the costs of major surface
transportation projects.
On March 20, 2009, the President of the United States signed a
memorandum for the heads of executive departments and agencies on
ensuring responsible spending of Recovery Act funds. The memorandum
directs the Department to develop transparent, merit-based selection
criteria to guide the commitment, obligation and expenditure of TIGER
Discretionary Grant funds.
The memorandum directs departments and agencies to award TIGER
Discretionary Grants to projects with a demonstrated or potential
ability to: ``(i) Deliver programmatic results; (ii) achieve economic
stimulus by optimizing economic activity and the number of jobs created
or saved in relation to the Federal dollars obligated; (iii) achieve
long-term public benefits by, for example, investing in technological
advances in science and health to increase economic efficiency and
improve quality of life; investing in transportation, environmental
protection, and other infrastructure that will provide long-term
economic benefits; fostering energy independence; or improving
educational quality; and (iv) satisfy the Recovery Act's transparency
and accountability objectives.''
The purpose of this notice is to solicit applications from Eligible
Applicants interested in receiving funds under this program and to
request comments on the selection criteria and guidance outlined in
this notice.
II. Selection Criteria and Guidance on Application of Selection
Criteria
This section specifies the criteria that the Department will use to
evaluate applications. The criteria incorporate the limited statutory
eligibility requirements for this program, which are specified in this
notice as relevant. This section is split into three parts. Section A
(Selection Criteria) specifies the criteria that the Department will
use to rate projects. Additional guidance about how the Department will
apply these criteria, including illustrative metrics and examples, is
provided in Section B (Additional Guidance on Selection Criteria).
Section C (Program-Specific Criteria) explains how the Department is
going to use certain program-specific criteria to help differentiate
between similar projects (for example, multiple bridge replacement
projects, or multiple New Starts projects). The program-specific
criteria will not be rated as the selection criteria are rated, but
rather will be used to assign priority among similar projects during
the evaluation and selection process. As stated below in Section VII(F)
(Contents of Application, Selection Criteria), applicants should
address both the selection criteria and the program-specific criteria
in their applications.
A. Selection Criteria
TIGER Discretionary Grants will be awarded based on the selection
criteria as outlined below. There are two categories of selection
criteria, ``Primary Selection Criteria'' and ``Secondary Selection
Criteria.''
The Primary Selection Criteria include (1) Long-Term Outcomes and
(2) Jobs Creation & Economic Stimulus. The Secondary Selection Criteria
include (1) Innovation and (2) Partnership. The Primary Selection
Criteria are intended to capture the primary objectives of the TIGER
Discretionary Grants provision of the Recovery Act, which include near-
term economic recovery and job creation, maximization of long-term
economic benefits and impacts on the Nation, a region, or a
metropolitan area, and assistance for those most affected by the
current economic downturn. The Secondary Selection Criteria are
intended to capture the benefits of new and/or innovative approaches to
achieving programmatic objectives.
[[Page 23229]]
1. Primary Selection Criteria
(a) Long-Term Outcomes
The Department will give priority to projects that have a
significant impact on desirable long-term outcomes for the Nation, a
metropolitan area, or a region. Applications that do not demonstrate a
likelihood of significant long-term benefits in this criterion will not
proceed in the evaluation process. The following types of long-term
outcomes will be given priority:
(i) State of Good Repair: Improving the condition of existing
transportation facilities and systems, with particular emphasis on
projects that minimize life-cycle costs.
(ii) Economic Competitiveness: Contributing to the economic
competitiveness of the United States over the medium- to long-term.
(iii) Livability: Improving the quality of living and working
environments and the experience for people in communities across the
United States.
(iv) Sustainability: Improving energy efficiency, reducing
dependence on oil, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and benefitting
the environment.
(v) Safety: Improving the safety of U.S. transportation facilities
and systems.
(b) Job Creation & Economic Stimulus
Consistent with the purposes of the Recovery Act, the Department
will give priority to projects that are expected to quickly create and
preserve jobs and stimulate rapid increases in economic activity,
particularly jobs and activity that benefit economically distressed
areas as defined by section 301 of the Public Works and Economic
Development Act of 1965, as amended (42 U.S.C. 3161) (``Economically
Distressed Areas'').
2. Secondary Selection Criteria
(a) Innovation
The Department will give priority to projects that use innovative
strategies to pursue the long-term outcomes outlined above.
(b) Partnership
The Department will give priority to projects that demonstrate
strong collaboration among a broad range of participants and/or
integration of transportation with other public service efforts.
B. Additional Guidance on Selection Criteria
The following additional guidance explains how the Department will
evaluate each of the selection criteria identified above in Section
II(A) (Selection Criteria). Applicants are encouraged to demonstrate
the responsiveness of a project to any and all of the selection
criteria with the most relevant information that applicants can
provide, regardless of whether such information has been specifically
requested, or identified, in this notice. Any such information shall be
considered part of the application, not supplemental, for purposes of
the application size limits specified below in Section VII(A) (Length
of Application).
1. Primary Selection Criteria
(a) Long-Term Outcomes
In order to measure a project's alignment with this criterion, the
Department will assess the public benefits generated by the project, as
measured by the extent to which a project produces one or more of the
following outcomes.
(i) State of Good Repair: In order to determine whether the project
will improve the condition of existing transportation facilities or
systems, including whether life-cycle costs will be minimized, the
Department will assess (i) whether the project is part of, or
consistent with, relevant state, local or regional efforts to maintain
transportation facilities or systems in a state of good repair, (ii)
whether an important aim of the project is to rehabilitate, reconstruct
or upgrade surface transportation projects that threaten future
economic growth and stability due to their poor condition, (iii)
whether the project is appropriately capitalized up front and uses
asset management approaches that optimize its long-term cost structure,
and (iv) the extent to which a sustainable source of revenue is
available for long-term operations and maintenance of the project. The
application should include any quantifiable metrics of the facility or
system's current condition and performance and, to the extent possible,
projected condition and performance, with an explanation of how the
project will improve the facility or system's condition, performance
and/or long-term cost structure.
(ii) Economic Competitiveness: In order to determine whether a
project promotes the economic competitiveness of the United States, the
Department will assess whether the project will measurably contribute
over the long-term to growth in employment, production or other high
value economic activity. For purposes of aligning a project with this
outcome, applicants should provide evidence of the long-term economic
benefits that are provided by the completed project, not the near-term
economic benefits of construction that are captured in the Jobs
Creation & Economic Stimulus criterion. In weighing long-term
employment benefits, the quality of jobs supported will be considered
as well as number of jobs and whether these jobs are expected to
provide employment in Economically Distressed Areas. Priority
consideration will be given to projects that: (i) Improve long term
efficiency, reliability or cost-competitiveness in the movement of
workers or goods, or (ii) make improvements that allow for expansion,
hiring, or other growth of private sector production at specific
locations, particularly Economically Distressed Areas. Applicants may
propose other methods of demonstrating a project's contribution to the
economic competitiveness of the country and such methods will be
reviewed on a case by case basis.
Economic competitiveness may be demonstrated by the project's
ability to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the
transportation system through integration or better use of all existing
transportation infrastructure (which may be evidenced by the project's
involvement with or benefits to more than one mode and/or its
compatibility with and preferably augmentation of the capacities of
connecting modes and facilities), but only to the extent that these
enhancements lead to the economic benefits that are identified in the
preceding paragraph.
(iii) Livability: Livability investments are projects that not only
deliver transportation benefits, but are also designed and planned in
such a way that they have a positive impact on qualitative measures of
community life. This element of long-term outcomes delivers benefits
that are inherently difficult to measure. However, it is implicit to
livability that its benefits are shared and therefore magnified by the
number of potential users in the affected community. Therefore,
descriptions of how projects enhance livability should include a
description of the affected community and the scale of the project's
impact. In order to determine whether a project improves the quality of
the living and working environment of a community, the Department will
qualitatively assess whether the project:
(1) Will significantly enhance user mobility through the creation
of more convenient transportation options for travelers;
(2) Will improve existing transportation choices by enhancing
points of modal connectivity or by reducing congestion on existing
modal assets;
[[Page 23230]]
(3) Will improve accessibility and transport services for
economically disadvantaged populations, non-drivers, senior citizens,
and persons with disabilities, or to make goods, commodities, and
services more readily available to these groups; and/or
(4) Is the result of a planning process which coordinated
transportation and land-use planning decisions and encouraged community
participation in the process.
Livability improvements may include projects for new or improved
biking and walking infrastructure. Particular attention will be paid to
the degree to which such projects contribute significantly to broader
traveler mobility through intermodal connections, or improved
connections between residential and commercial areas.
(iv) Sustainability: In order to determine whether a project
promotes a more environmentally sustainable transportation system, the
Department will assess its ability to:
(1) improve energy efficiency, reduce dependence on oil and/or
reduce greenhouse gas emissions; applicants are encouraged to provide
quantitative information regarding expected reductions in emissions of
CO2 or fuel consumption as a result of the project, or
expected use of clean or alternative sources of energy; projects that
demonstrate a projected decrease in the movement of people or goods by
less energy-efficient vehicles or systems will be given priority under
this factor; and
(2) maintain, protect or enhance the environment, as evidenced by
its avoidance of adverse environmental impacts (for example, adverse
impacts related to air quality, wetlands, and endangered species) and/
or by its environmental benefits (for example, improved air quality,
wetlands creation or improved habitat connectivity).
Applicants are encouraged to provide quantitative information that
validates the existence of substantial transportation-related costs
related to energy consumption and adverse environmental effects and
evidence of the extent to which the project will reduce or mitigate
those costs.
(v) Safety: In order to determine whether the project improves
safety, the Department will assess the project's ability to reduce the
number, rate and consequences of surface transportation-related
crashes, and injuries and fatalities among drivers and/or non-drivers
in the United States or in the affected metropolitan area or region,
and/or its contribution to the elimination of highway/rail grade
crossings, the protection of pipelines, or the prevention of unintended
release of hazardous materials.
Evaluation of Expected Project Costs and Benefits: The Department
believes that benefit cost analysis (``BCA''), including the
monetization and discounting of costs and benefits to a common unit of
measurement in present day dollars, is an important discipline. For BCA
to yield useful results, the Department believes that full
consideration of cost and benefits is necessary. These range from
factors traditionally considered, including fuel savings and travel
time benefits, to some that have not traditionally been considered,
such as greenhouse gas emissions, water quality impacts, public health
effects, and others. In addition, to be fully useful, BCA should
attempt to capture the dynamic effects that transportation investments
can have on land use and household budgets. The systematic process of
comparing expected benefits and costs helps decision-makers organize
information about, and determine trade-offs between, alternative
transportation investments. The Department has responsibility under
Executive Order 12893, Principles for Federal Infrastructure
Investments, 59 FR 4233, to base infrastructure investments on
systematic analysis of expected benefits and costs, including both
quantitative and qualitative measures.
Therefore, applicants for TIGER Discretionary Grants are generally
required to identify, quantify, and compare expected benefits and
costs, subject to the following qualifications:
This requirement will be waived for applicants seeking waivers of
the $20 million minimum grant size requirement for Smaller Projects.
Any applicant seeking a TIGER Discretionary Grant of more than $20
million but less than $100 million must include in its application
estimates of the project's expected benefits in the five long-term
outcomes identified in this Section II(A)(1)(a). The lack of a useful
analysis of expected project benefits may be ground for denying award
of a TIGER Discretionary Grant to any such applicant.
Any applicant seeking a TIGER Discretionary Grant in excess of $100
million must provide a well-developed analysis of expected benefits and
costs, including a description of input and output requirements and
other methodological standards used for the analysis. The analysis
should indicate the value that was assigned for qualitative measures,
in addition to quantitative measures. Where information on costs and
benefits, including consideration of externalities, is of sufficient
quality and completeness to allow for a robust assessment of a
project's benefit cost ratio, this analysis should be presented. In
doing so, applicants should discuss the effects that better or more
complete information would be likely to have on the benefit cost ratio
presented and the reasons such information was not available for
analysis. Where quality or completeness of data is not sufficient to
allow a meaningful assessment of whether a project's benefit cost ratio
is positive or negative, applicants should discuss the data limitations
that lead to this conclusion and present a qualitative comparison of
costs and benefits. The lack of a useful analysis comparing expected
benefits and costs for any such project may be ground for denying award
of a TIGER Discretionary Grant to such an applicant.
The Department is still considering how best to implement this
requirement for applicants seeking TIGER Discretionary Grants in excess
of $100 million. The Department therefore requests comments on
appropriate input and output requirements, methodological standards,
and other characteristics of this analysis. Comments are also requested
on how this approach might best be applied to criteria that do not
readily lend themselves to monetization. As soon as possible after the
comment period, DOT will publish more detailed guidance on the analysis
required for applicants seeking TIGER Discretionary Grants in excess of
$100 million.
In all cases, if it is clear to the Department that the total
benefits of a project are not reasonably likely to outweigh the
project's costs, the Department will not award a TIGER Discretionary
Grant to the project. Consistent with the broader goals of the Recovery
Act and the specific appropriation for the TIGER Discretionary Grants
program, the Department can consider some factors that do not readily
lend themselves to monetization, including equity, and distributional,
geographic and other considerations.
Evaluation of Project Performance: The Department also encourages
applicants with the requisite wherewithal to provide a plan for
evaluating the success of the project (or a program of projects) and
measuring short- and long-term performance, specifically with respect
to the economic recovery measures and long-term outcomes specified in
this notice.
(b) Job Creation & Economic Stimulus
In order to measure a project's alignment with this criterion, the
[[Page 23231]]
Department will assess whether the project promotes the short- or long-
term creation or preservation of jobs and whether the project rapidly
promotes new or expanded business opportunities during construction of
the project or thereafter. Demonstration of a project's rapid economic
impact is critical to a project's alignment with this criterion.
Applicants are encouraged to provide information to assist the
Department in making these assessments, including the total amount of
funds that will be expended on construction and construction-related
activities by all of the entities participating in the project and, to
the extent measurable, the number and type of jobs to be created and/or
preserved by the project during construction and thereafter. Applicants
should also identify any business enterprises to be created or
benefited by the project during its construction and once it becomes
operational.
Consistent with the Recovery Act, the Updated Implementing Guidance
for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 issued by the
Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') on April 3, 2009 (the ``OMB
Guidance''), and federal laws guaranteeing equal opportunity,
applicants are encouraged to provide information to assist the
Department in assessing (1) whether the project will promote the
creation of job opportunities for low-income workers through the use of
best practice hiring programs and utilization of apprenticeship
(including pre-apprenticeship) programs; (2) whether the project will
provide maximum practicable opportunities for small businesses and
disadvantaged business enterprises, including veteran-owned small
businesses and service disabled veteran-owned small businesses; (3)
whether the project will make effective use of community-based
organizations in connecting disadvantaged workers with economic
opportunities; (4) whether the project will support entities that have
a sound track record on labor practices and compliance with federal
laws ensuring that American workers are safe and treated fairly; and
(5) whether the project implements best practices, consistent with our
nation's civil rights and equal opportunity laws, for ensuring that all
individuals--regardless of race, gender, age, disability, and national
origin--benefit from the Recovery Act.
To the extent possible, applicants should indicate whether the
populations most likely to benefit from the creation or preservation of
jobs or new or expanded business opportunities are from Economically
Distressed Areas. In addition, to the extent possible, applicants
should indicate whether the project's procurement plan is likely to
create follow-on jobs and economic stimulus for manufacturers and
suppliers that support the construction industry. A key consideration
in assessing projects under this criterion will be how quickly jobs are
created.
Consistent with Section 1602 of the Recovery Act (Preference for
Quick-Start Activities), the Department will assess whether a project
is ready to proceed rapidly upon receipt of a TIGER Discretionary
Grant, as evidenced by:
(i) Project Schedule: A feasible and sufficiently detailed project
schedule demonstrating that the project can begin construction quickly
upon receipt of a TIGER Discretionary Grant and that the Grant Funds
will be spent steadily and expeditiously once construction starts; the
schedule should show how many direct, on-project jobs are expected to
be created or sustained during each calendar quarter after the project
is underway;
(ii) Environmental Approvals: Receipt (or reasonably anticipated
receipt) of all environmental approvals necessary for the project to
proceed to construction on the timeline specified in the project
schedule, including satisfaction of all Federal, State and local
requirements and completion of the National Environmental Policy Act
process;
(iii) Legislative Approvals: Receipt of all necessary legislative
approvals (for example, legislative authority to charge user fees or
set toll rates), and evidence of support from State and local
officials, including relevant governor(s) and/or mayors. Evidence of
support from all relevant State and local officials is not required,
however, the evidence should demonstrate that the project is broadly
supported;
(iv) State and Local Planning: The inclusion of the project in the
relevant State, metropolitan, and local planning documents, or a
certification from the appropriate agency that the project will be
included in the relevant planning document prior to award of a TIGER
Discretionary Grant;
(v) Technical Feasibility: The technical feasibility of the
project, including completion of substantial preliminary engineering
work; and
(vi) Financial Feasibility: The viability and completeness of the
project's financing package (assuming the availability of the requested
TIGER Discretionary Grant funds), including evidence of stable and
reliable financial commitments and contingency reserves, as
appropriate, and evidence of the grant recipient's ability to manage
grants.
The Department reserves the right to revoke any award of TIGER
Discretionary Grant funds and to award such funds to another project to
the extent that such funds are not timely expended and/or construction
does not begin in accordance with the project schedule. Because
projects have different schedules the Department will consider on a
case-by-case basis how much time after award of a TIGER Discretionary
Grant each project has before funds must be expended and construction
started. This deadline will be specified for each TIGER Discretionary
Grant in the project-specific grant agreements signed by the grant
recipients and will be based on critical path items identified by
applicants in response to items (i) through (vi) above. For example, if
an applicant reasonably anticipates that National Environmental Policy
Act requirements will be completed and final documentation received
within 30 to 60 days of award of a TIGER Discretionary Grant, this
timeframe will be taken into account in evaluating the application, but
also in establishing a deadline for expenditure of funds and
commencement of construction. The Department's ability to obligate
funds for TIGER Discretionary Grants expires on September 30, 2011.
In compliance with the Recovery Act, the Department will give
priority to projects that are expected to be completed on or before
February 17, 2012. For purposes of this solicitation, ``completed''
means that all of the TIGER Discretionary Grant funds awarded to the
project have been obligated and expended and construction of the
project is substantially complete.
The ability of the grant recipient to complete the project by this
date must be clearly demonstrated in the project schedule. The
Department will give priority to projects that utilize innovative
contracting approaches that encourage accelerated project delivery. The
Department will consider projects that are not expected to be completed
by February 17, 2012, but these projects will not be rated as highly
under this criterion.
2. Secondary Selection Criteria
(a) Innovation
In order to measure a project's alignment with this criterion, the
Department will assess the extent to which the project uses innovative
technology (including, for example, intelligent transportation systems,
dynamic pricing, rail wayside or on-board energy recovery, smart cards,
real-
[[Page 23232]]
time dispatching, active traffic management, radio frequency
identification (RFID), or others) to pursue one or more of the long-
term outcomes outlined above and/or to significantly enhance the
operational performance of the transportation system. The Department
will also assess the extent to which the project incorporates
innovations that demonstrate the value of new approaches to, among
other things, transportation funding and finance, contracting, project
delivery, congestion management, safety management, asset management,
or long-term operations and maintenance. The applicant should clearly
demonstrate that the innovation is designed to pursue one or more of
the long-term outcomes outlined above and/or significantly enhance the
transportation system.
(b) Partnership
(i) Jurisdictional & Stakeholder Collaboration: In order to measure
a project's alignment with this criterion, the Department will assess
the project's involvement of non-Federal entities and the use of non-
Federal funds, including the scope of involvement and share of total
funding. The Department will give priority to projects that receive
financial commitments from, or otherwise involve, State and local
governments, other public entities, or private or nonprofit entities,
including projects that engage parties that are not traditionally
involved in transportation projects, such as nonprofit community
groups. Pursuant to the OMB Guidance, the Department will give priority
to projects that make effective use of community-based organizations in
connecting disadvantaged people with economic opportunities.
In compliance with the Recovery Act, the Department will give
priority to projects for which a TIGER Discretionary Grant will help to
complete an overall financing package. An applicant should clearly
demonstrate the extent to which the project cannot be readily and
efficiently completed without Federal assistance, and the extent to
which other sources of Federal assistance are or are not readily
available for the project, including other funds made available
pursuant to the Recovery Act. The Department will assess the amount of
private debt and equity to be invested in the project or the amount of
co-investment from State, local or other non-profit sources.
The Department will also assess the extent to which the project
demonstrates collaboration among neighboring or regional jurisdictions
to achieve National, regional or metropolitan benefits. Multiple States
or jurisdictions may submit a joint application and should identify a
lead State or jurisdiction as the primary point of contact. Where
multiple States are submitting a joint application, the application
should demonstrate how the project costs are apportioned between the
States to assist the Department in making the distributional
determinations described below in Section III(C) (Distribution of
Funds).
(ii) Disciplinary Integration: In order to demonstrate the value of
partnerships across government agencies that serve the various public
service missions forwarded by the Recovery Act and to promote
collaboration on the objectives outlined in this notice, the Department
will give priority to projects that are supported, financially or
otherwise, by non-transportation public agencies that are pursuing
similar objectives. For example, the Department will give priority to
transportation projects that create more livable communities and are
supported by relevant public housing agencies, or transportation
projects that encourage energy efficiency or improve the environment
and are supported by relevant public agencies with energy or
environmental missions.
C. Program-Specific Criteria
The Department will use certain program-specific criteria in the
evaluation and selection process to help differentiate between similar
projects. Similar projects are those that have similar characteristics
and satisfy the eligibility requirements of existing programmatic
structures (for example, two urban light rail projects eligible to
participate in the New Starts program). To the extent two or more
similar projects have similar ratings based on the selection criteria
outlined in Section II(A) (Selection Criteria), the program-specific
criteria will be used to assign priority among these projects.
Projects will not be given specific ratings of ``highly
recommended,'' ``recommended'' or ``not recommended'' for applicable
program-specific criteria; rather, the Department will use the program-
specific criteria to rank similar projects. To the extent otherwise
similar projects can be differentiated based on the selection criteria,
program-specific criteria will not be given any weight.
The program-specific criteria are not intended to limit the number
of similar projects that can receive TIGER Discretionary Grants.
Program-specific criteria will only be applied to the types of
projects identified below. Any other type of project will be
differentiated from other similar projects solely based on the
selection criteria outlined in Section II(A) (Selection Criteria). The
Department will use the following program-specific criteria, where
applicable, to assign priority among similar projects:
1. For bridge replacement projects, program-specific criteria are
the following criteria found in 23 CFR 707: Total daily truck and non-
truck traffic, bridge sufficiency ratings, and bridges with load or
geometric restrictions.
2. For transit projects, program-specific criteria are as follows:
Bus and rail fleet purchases that are within established FTA spare
ratio policies, rehabilitation and replacement of assets that have
exceeded the useful life span as identified in FTA policy, and/or the
proposed project's rating under the New Starts and Small Starts program
criteria, as applicable (a copy of the criteria used for this program
is available at http://www.fta.dot.gov/planning/newstarts/planning_environment_5615.html).
3. For projects involving port infrastructure investments, program-
specific criteria are, for both current state and post-project
completion, the port or system's:
(a) Passenger and/or freight throughput, storage or processing
capacity, including but not limited to, capacity movement (in tonnage,
TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit), barrels, etc.) across the dock,
storage capacity on the terminal, and gate throughput;
(b) Demand for services or demand for capacity (in the case of
post-project completion, projections or estimates);
(c) Efficiency (e.g. time savings, including vessel turnaround,
gate and dwell times, and/or cost savings);
(d) Reliability and/or resiliency, including but not limited to,
ability of the facility or system to recover from natural or man-made
disasters and provide necessary services;
(e) National security or National interest aspects of items (a)
through (d) above including but not limited to movement of Department
of Defense assets and strategic location; and
(f) External factors that may influence or limit items (a) through
(e) above (channel or berth maintenance or deepening and other
navigation issues, road, rail or waterway factors that could represent
bottlenecks and backups, etc.).
4. For TIGER TIFIA Payments, program-specific criteria are the
eight statutory selection criteria used by the Department's TIFIA Joint
Program Office to evaluate and select projects (these criteria have
been assigned weights through regulation, as indicated below):
(a) The extent to which the project is nationally or regionally
significant, in
[[Page 23233]]
terms of generating economic benefits, supporting international
commerce, or otherwise enhancing the national transportation system (20
percent);
(b) The extent to which the project helps maintain or protect the
environment (20 percent);
(c) The extent to which TIFIA assistance would foster innovative
public-private partnerships and attract private debt or equity
investment (20 percent);
(d) The creditworthiness of the project, including a determination
by the Secretary that any financing for the project has appropriate
security features, such as a rate covenant, to ensure repayment (12.5
percent);
(e) The likelihood that TIFIA assistance would enable the project
to proceed at an earlier date than the project would otherwise be able
to proceed (12.5 percent);
(f) The extent to which the project uses new technologies,
including Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), that enhance the
efficiency of the project (5 percent);
(g) The amount of budget authority required to fund the Federal
credit instrument made available (5 percent); and
(h) The extent to which TIFIA assistance would reduce the
contribution of Federal grant assistance to the project (5 percent).
In addition, approval for TIFIA credit assistance requires the
receipt of a preliminary rating opinion letter indicating that the
project's senior debt obligations have the potential to attain an
investment-grade rating. Complete details regarding the TIFIA selection
process can be found in the program guide, which can be downloaded from
http://tifia.fhwa.dot.gov/.
III. Evaluation and Selection Process
A. Ensuring Responsible Spending of Recovery Act Funds
On March 20, 2009, the President of the United States signed a
memorandum for the heads of executive departments and agencies on
ensuring responsible spending of Recovery Act funds. The memorandum
directs the Department to develop transparent, merit-based selection
criteria to guide the commitment, obligation and expenditure of TIGER
Discretionary Grant funds.
In accordance with the memorandum, the criteria specified in this
notice help ensure that TIGER Discretionary Grants will be awarded to
projects with a demonstrated or potential ability to: ``(i) Deliver
programmatic results; (ii) achieve economic stimulus by optimizing
economic activity and the number of jobs created or saved in relation
to the Federal dollars obligated; (iii) achieve long-term public
benefits by, for example, investing in technological advances in
science and health to increase economic efficiency and improve quality
of life; investing in transportation, environmental protection, and
other infrastructure that will provide long-term economic benefits;
fostering energy independence; or improving educational quality; and
(iv) satisfy the Recovery Act's transparency and accountability
objectives.''
In accordance with the memorandum, the Department will not award
TIGER Discretionary Grants to any project that is imprudent or does not
further the job creation, economic recovery and other purposes of the
Recovery Act.
B. Evaluation Process
The Department will establish an evaluation team to review each
application that is received by the Department prior to the Application
Deadline. The evaluation team will be organized and led by the Office
of the Secretary and will include members from each of the Cognizant
Modal Administrations (as defined below). These representatives will
include technical and professional staff with relevant experience and/
or expertise. The evaluation team will be responsible for evaluating
and rating all of the projects and making funding recommendations to
the Secretary. The evaluation process will require team members to
evaluate and rate applications individually before convening with other
members to discuss ratings. The composition of the evaluation team will
be finalized after the Application Deadline, based on the number and
nature of applications received.
The Department will not assign specific numerical scores to
projects based on the selection criteria outlined above in Section
II(A) (Selection Criteria). Rather, ratings of ``highly recommended,''
``recommended,'' or ``not recommended'' will be assigned to projects
for each of the selection criteria. The Department will award TIGER
Discretionary Grants to projects that are ``highly recommended'' in one
or more of the selection criteria, with projects that are ``highly
recommended'' in multiple selection criteria being more likely to
receive TIGER Discretionary Grants. To the extent the initial
evaluation process does not sufficiently differentiate among highly
rated projects, the Department will use a similar three-tiered rating
process to re-assess the projects that were highly rated and identify
those that should be most highly rated.
The Department will give more weight to the two Primary Selection
Criteria (Long-Term Outcomes and Jobs Creation & Economic Stimulus)
than to the two Secondary Selection Criteria (Innovation and
Partnership). Projects that are unable to demonstrate a likelihood of
significant long-term benefits in any of the five long-term outcomes
identified in Section II(A)(1)(a) (Long-Term Outcomes) will not proceed
in the evaluation process. A project need not be well aligned with each
of the long-term outcomes in order to be successful in the long-term
outcomes criterion overall. However, to be successful in the long-term
outcomes criterion a project must be ``highly recommended'' for at
least one of the long-term outcomes or ``recommended'' for multiple
long-term outcomes. Projects that are strongly aligned with multiple
long-term outcomes will be the most successful in this criterion.
For the Jobs Creation & Economic Stimulus criterion, projects need
not receive a rating of ``highly recommended'' in order to be
recommended for funding, although a project that is not ready to
proceed quickly, as evidenced by the items requested in Section
II(B)(1)(b)(i)-(vi) (Project Schedule, Environmental Approvals,
Legislative Approvals, State and Local Planning, Technical Feasibility,
and Financial Feasibility), is less likely to be successful in this
criterion.
The Department will give less weight to the two Secondary Selection
Criteria (Innovation and Partnership) than to the two Primary Selection
Criteria (Long-Term Outcomes and Jobs Creation & Economic Stimulus).
The two Secondary Selection Criteria will be rated equally.
As noted above in Section II(C) (Program-Specific Criteria), the
Program-Specific Criteria will not be given ratings and will only be
used to the extent the Department needs to differentiate and assign
priority among similar projects that have similar ratings based on the
selection criteria outlined above in Section II(A) (Selection
Criteria).
The following table summarizes the weighting of the selection
criteria, as described in the preceding paragraphs:
[[Page 23234]]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Long-Term Outcomes........... The Department will give more weight to
this criterion than to either of the
Secondary Selection Criteria. In
addition, this criterion has a minimum
threshold requirement. Projects that are
unable to demonstrate a likelihood of
significant long-term benefits in any of
the five long-term outcomes identified
in this criterion will not proceed in
the evaluation process.
Jobs Creation & Economic The Department will give more weight to
Stimulus. this criterion than to either of the
Secondary Selection Criteria. This
criterion will be considered after it is
determined that a project demonstrates a
likelihood of significant long-term
benefits in at least one of the five
long-term outcomes identified in the
long-term outcomes criterion.
Innovation & Partnership..... The Department will give less weight to
these criteria than to the Primary
Selection Criteria.
Project-Specific Criteria.... The Department will only give weight to
these criteria to the extent the
Department needs to differentiate
multiple similar projects that are rated
similarly based on the Primary and
Secondary Selection Criteria.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
To be selected for a TIGER Discretionary Grant, a project must be
an Eligible Project and the applicant must be an Eligible Applicant.
The Department may consider one or more components of a large project
to be an Eligible Project, but only to the extent that the components
themselves, not the project of which they are a part, are Eligible
Projects and satisfy the selection criteria specified in this notice.
For these projects, the benefits described in an application must be
related to the components of the project for which funding is
requested, not the full project of which they are a part.
C. Distribution of Funds
As noted above in Section I (Background), the Recovery Act
prohibits the award of more than 20 percent of the funds made available
under this program to projects in any one State. The Recovery Act also
requires that the Department take measures to ensure an equitable
geographic distribution of funds and an appropriate balance in
addressing the needs of urban and rural communities. The Department
will apply an initial unconstrained competitive rating process based on
the selection criteria and program-specific criteria identified above
in Section II(A) (Selection Criteria) and Section II(C) (Program-
Specific Criteria) to determine a preliminary list of projects
recommended for TIGER Discretionary Grants. The Department will then
analyze the preliminary list and determine whether the purely
competitive ratings are consistent with distributional requirements of
the Recovery Act. If necessary, the Department will adjust the list of
recommended projects to satisfy the statutory distributional
requirements while remaining as consistent as possible with the
competitive ratings.
As noted above in Section II(B)(2)(b)(i) (Jurisdictional &
Stakeholder Collaboration), applications submitted jointly by multiple
States should include an allocation of project costs to assist the
Department in making these determinations. In addition, the Department
will use the subsidy and administrative cost estimate, not the
principal amount of credit assistance, to determine any TIGER TIFIA
Payment's effect on these distributional requirements.
D. Transparency of Process
In the interest of transparency, the Department will disclose as
much of the information related to its evaluation process as is
practical. The Department expects that the TIGER Discretionary Grants
program may be reviewed and/or audited by Congress, the U.S. Government
Accountability Office, the Department's Inspector General, or others,
and has and will continue to take steps to document its decision making
process.
IV. Grant Administration
The Department expects that each TIGER Discretionary Grant will be
administered by the modal administration in the Department with the
most experience and/or expertise in the relevant project area (the
``Cognizant Modal Administration''), pursuant to a grant agreement
between the TIGER Discretionary Grant recipient and the Cognizant Modal
Administration. In accordance with the Recovery Act, the Secretary has
the discretion to delegate such responsibilities.
Applicable Federal laws, rules and regulations will apply to
projects that receive TIGER Discretionary Grants, including all of the
requirements included in the Recovery Act.
As noted above in Section II(B)(1)(b) (Jobs Creation & Economic
Stimulus), how soon after award a project is expected to expend Grant
Funds and start construction will be considered on a case-by-case basis
and will be specified in the project-specific grant agreements. The
Department reserves the right to revoke any award of TIGER
Discretionary Grant funds and to award such funds to another project to
the extent that such funds are not timely expended and/or construction
does not begin in accordance with the project schedule. The
Department's ability to obligate funds for TIGER Discretionary Grants
expires on September 30, 2011.
V. Waiver of Minimum Grant Size Requirement
The Department has discretion under the Recovery Act to waive the
$20 million minimum grant size requirement for Smaller Projects.
Applicants for TIGER Discretionary Grants of less than $20 million for
Smaller Projects are encouraged to apply and should address the same
criteria as applicants for TIGER Discretionary Grants in excess of $20
million. The term ``grant'' in this provision of the Recovery Act does
not include TIGER TIFIA Payments.
VI. TIGER TIFIA Payments
Up to $200 million of the $1.5 billion available for TIGER
Discretionary Grants may be used for TIGER TIFIA Payments. Given the
average subsidy cost of the existing TIFIA portfolio, $200 million in
TIGER TIFIA Payments could support approximately $2 billion in Federal
credit assistance. Applicants seeking TIGER TIFIA Payments should apply
in accordance with all of the criteria and guidance specified in this
notice for TIGER Discretionary Grant applicants and will be evaluated
concurrently with all other applications. Any applicant seeking a TIGER
TIFIA Payment is required to comply with all of the TIFIA program's
standard application and approval requirements, including submission of
a Letter of Interest prior to submission of a TIFIA application (the
TIFIA program guide can be downloaded from http://tifia.fhwa.dot.gov/).
The Letter of Interest must be submitted at least six weeks prior to
the Application Deadline.
The Department does not expect applicants for TIGER TIFIA Payments
to have received an instrument from TIFIA obligating Federal credit
assistance for the project before the application is submitted;
however, applicants should demonstrate that they are ready to proceed
rapidly upon receipt of a TIGER
[[Page 23235]]
TIFIA Payment in accordance with the guidance specified above in
Section II(B)(1)(b) (Job Creation & Economic Stimulus). The
Department's TIFIA Joint Program Office will assist the Department in
determining a project's readiness to proceed rapidly upon receipt of a
TIGER TIFIA Payment.
Applicants seeking TIGER TIFIA Payments may also apply for a TIGER
Discretionary Grant for the same project and must indicate the type(s)
of funding for which they are applying clearly on the face of their
applications. An applicant for a TIGER TIFIA Payment must submit an
application pursuant to this notice for a TIGER TIFIA Payment even if
it does not wish to apply for a TIGER Discretionary Grant.
Unless otherwise expressly noted herein, any and all requirements
that apply to TIGER Discretionary Grants pursuant to the Recovery Act,
this notice, or otherwise, including all reporting and Recovery Act
related requirements, apply to TIGER TIFIA Payments. TIFIA applicants
that do not receive TIGER TIFIA Payments will not be required to comply
with any of these requirements.
VII. Contents of Application
An applicant for a TIGER Discretionary Grant should include all of
the information requested below in its application. The Department
reserves the right to ask any applicant to supplement the data in its
application, but expects applications to be complete upon submission.
To the extent practical, the Department encourages applicants to
provide data and evidence of project merits in a form that is publicly
available or verifiable. For TIGER TIFIA Payments, these requirements
apply only to the applications required under this notice; the standard
TIFIA loan application requirements, including the standard $30,000.00
application fee, are separately described in the Program Guide and
Application Form found at http://tifia.fhwa.dot.gov/.
A. Length of Applications
The narrative portion of an application should not exceed 25 pages
in length. Documentation supporting the assertions made in the
narrative portion may also be provided, but should be limited to
relevant information. If possible, Web site links to supporting
documentation should be provided rather than copies of these materials.
At the applicant's discretion, relevant materials provided previously
to a Cognizant Modal Administration (as defined below) in support of a
different DOT discretionary program (for example, New Starts or TIFIA)
may be referenced and described as unchanged. To the extent referenced,
this information need not be resubmitted for the TIGER Discretionary
Grant application.
B. Contact Information
An application should include the name, phone number, e-mail
address and organization address of the primary point of contact for
the applicant. The Department will use this information to inform
parties of the Department's decision regarding selection of projects,
as well as to contact parties in the event that the Department needs
additional information about an application.
C. Project Description
An application should include a detailed description of the
proposed project and geospatial data for the project, including a map
of the project's location and its connections to existing
transportation infrastructure. An application should also include a
description of how the project addresses the needs of an urban and/or
rural area. An application should clearly describe the transportation
challenges that the project aims to address, and how the project will
address these challenges. This description should include relevant data
such as, for example, passenger or freight volumes, congestion levels,
infrastructure condition, or safety experience.
D. Project Parties
An application should include information about the grant recipient
and other project parties.
E. Grant Funds and Sources and Uses of Project Funds
An application should include information about the amount of grant
funding requested, sources and uses of all project funds, total project
costs, percentage of project costs that would be paid for with TIGER
Discretionary Grant funds, and the identity and percentage shares of
all parties providing funds for the project (including Federal funds
provided under other programs).
F. Selection Criteria
An application must include information required for the Department
to assess each of the criteria specified in Section II(A) (Selection
Criteria), as such criteria are explained in Section II(B) (Additional
Guidance on Selection Criteria), and each of the relevant criteria
specified in Section II(C) (Program-Specific Criteria). Applicants are
encouraged to demonstrate the responsiveness of a project to any and
all of the selection criteria with the most relevant information that
applicants can provide, regardless of whether such information has been
specifically requested, or identified, in this notice. Any such
information shall be considered part of the application, not
supplemental, for purposes of the application size limits identified
above in item A (Length of Applications). If an applicant is unsure
whether any of the program-specific criteria apply to its project and
should be addressed in its application the applicant should contact the
Department pursuant to the procedures specified below in Section X
(Questions and Clarifications). Information provided pursuant to this
paragraph must be quantified, to the extent possible, to describe the
project's impacts on the Nation, a metropolitan area, or a region.
Information provided pursuant to this paragraph should include
projections for both the build and no-build scenarios for the project
for a point in time at least 20 years beyond the project's completion
date or the lifespan of the project, whichever is closest to the
present.
G. Federal Wage Rate Requirement
An application must include a certification, signed by the
applicant, stating that it will comply with the requirements of
subchapter IV of chapter 31 of title 40, United States Code (Federal
wage rate requirements), as required by the Recovery Act.
H. National Environmental Policy Act Requirement
An application must detail whether the project will significantly
impact the natural, social and/or economic environment. If the NEPA
process is completed, an applicant must indicate the date of, and
provide a Web site link or other reference to, the final Categorical
Exclusion, Finding of No Significant Impact or Record of Decision. If
the NEPA process is underway but not complete, the application must
detail where the project is in the process, indicate the anticipated
date of completion and provide a Web site link or other reference to
copies of any NEPA documents prepared.
I. Environmentally Related Federal, State and Local Actions
An application must indicate whether the proposed project is likely
to require actions by other agencies (e.g., permits), indicate the
status of such actions and provide a Web site link or other reference
to materials submitted to the other agencies, and/or demonstrate
[[Page 23236]]
compliance with other Federal, State and local regulations as
applicable, including, but not limited to, Section 4(f) Parklands,
Recreation Areas, Refuges, & Historic Properties; Section 106 Historic
and Culturally Significant Properties; Clean Water Act Wetlands and
Water; Executive Orders Wetlands, Floodplains, Environmental Justice;
Clean Air Act Air Quality (specifically note if the project is located
in a nonattainment area); Endangered Species Act Threatened and
Endangered Biological Resources; Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation
and Management Act Essential Fish Habitat; The Bald and Golden Eagle
Protection Act; and/or any State and local requirements.
J. Protection of Confidential Business Information
All information submitted as part of or in support of an
application shall use publicly available data or data that can be made
public and methodologies that are accepted by industry practice and
standards, to the extent possible. If the application includes
information that the applicant considers to be a trade secret or
confidential commercial or financial information, the applicant should
do the following: (1) Note on the front cover that the submission
``Contains Confidential Business Information (CBI);'' (2) mark each
affected page ``CBI;'' and (3) highlight or otherwise denote the CBI
portions. The Department protects such information from disclosure to
the extent allowed under applicable law. In the event the Department
receives a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for the
information, the Department will follow the procedures described in its
FOIA regulations at 49 CFR Sec. 7.17. Only information that is
ultimately determined to be confidential under that procedure will be
exempt from disclosure under FOIA.
VIII. Project Benefits
The Department expects to identify and report on the benefits of
the projects that it funds with TIGER Discretionary Grants. To this
end, the Department may request that recipients of TIGER Discretionary
Grants cooperate in Departmental efforts to collect and report on
information related to the benefits produced by the projects that
receive TIGER Discretionary Grants.
In addition to the creation and preservation of jobs and other
benefits that the Department is required to track and report pursuant
to the Recovery Act, the benefits that the Department reports on may
include the following: (1) Improved condition of existing
transportation facilities and systems; (2) long-term growth in
employment, production or other high-value economic activity; (3)
improved livability of communities across the United States; (4)
improved energy efficiency, reduced dependence on oil and reduced
greenhouse gas emissions; (5) reduced adverse impacts of transportation
on the natural environment; (6) reduced number, rate and consequences
of surface transportation-related crashes, injuries and fatalities; (7)
greater use of innovative technology and innovative approaches to
transportation funding and project delivery; (8) greater collaboration
with state and local governments, other public entities, private
entities, nonprofit entities, or other non-traditional partners; or (9)
greater integration of transportation decisionmaking with
decisionmaking by other public agencies with similar public service
objectives.
Because of the limited nature of this program, these benefits are
likely to be reported on a project-by-project basis and trends across
projects that were selected for TIGER Discretionary Grants may not be
readily available. In addition, because many of these benefits are
long-term outcomes, it may be years before the value of the investments
can be quantified and fully reported. The Department is considering the
most appropriate way to collect and report information about these
potential project benefits.
IX. Reporting Requirements
A. Section 1201(c): Maintenance of Effort: Reporting Requirements
Pursuant to the Recovery Act, entities receiving TIGER
Discretionary Grants will be required to report on grant activities on
a routine basis. Section 1201(c) of the Recovery Act (Maintenance of
Effort: Reporting Requirements), under General Provision--Department of
Transportation--imposes an obligation on entities receiving TIGER
Discretionary Grants, along with other Department grantees receiving
funds from the Department's Covered Programs, to submit periodic
reports to the agency from which funds were received. Section
1201(c)(2) requires that such reports include, for each Covered Program
(which includes the TIGER Discretionary Grant program) the following
information: the amount of Grant Funds appropriated, allocated,
obligated, and outlayed under the appropriation; the number of projects
put out to bid under the appropriation and the amount of Grant Funds
associated with these contracts; the number of projects for which
contracts have been awarded under the appropriation and the amount of
Grant Funds associated with these contracts; the number of projects for
which work has begun under these contracts and the associated amount of
Grant Funds; the number of projects for which work has been completed
and the associated amount of Grant Funds; the number of direct, on-
project jobs created or sustained by the Grant Funds for projects under
the appropriation and, to the extent possible, the estimated indirect
jobs created or sustained in associated supplying industries, including
the number of job-years created and total increase in employment since
February 17, 2009; and the actual aggregate expenditures by each
recipient from State sources for projects eligible for funding under
the program between February 17, 2009, and September 30, 2010, compared
to the level of such expenditures planned to occur during this period
as of February 17, 2009.
According to the statute, grant recipients must submit the first of
these reports not later than 90 days from February 17, 2009, and must
submit updated reports not later than 180 days, 1 year, 2 years, and 3
years after that date. Due to the unique timeframe for TIGER
Discretionary Grant awards, TIGER Discretionary Grant recipients should
submit the first of such reports on the first due date following the
award of Grant Funds and on each subsequent due date thereafter.
B. Section 1512: Reports on Use of Funds
Section 1512 of the Recovery Act (Reports on Use of Funds) requires
any entity that received TIGER Discretionary Grants to submit a report
not later than 10 days after the end of each calendar quarter as a
condition of receiving funding under the Recovery Act. Pursuant to the
OMB Guidance (which is available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/assets/memoranda_fy2009/m09-15.pdf), recipients must report to OMB
beginning 10 days after the end of the first calendar quarter after
funds are awarded. Recipients should refer to the OMB Guidance for more
detailed instructions on such reports. OMB is currently developing a
government-wide central reporting system. Detailed instructions for
centrally reporting the required information will be made available at
www.FederalReporting.gov.
[[Page 23237]]
C. Section 1609: Environmental Reporting
Section 1609(c) of the Recovery Act requires that Federal agencies
report via the President (specifically, to the White House Council on
Environmental Quality) every 90 days following enactment of the
Recovery Act on the status of projects funded under the Recovery Act
with respect to compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act.
To satisfy the purposes of the Recovery Act, grant recipients may
be required to provide additional information in response to requests
from OMB, the Congressional Budget Office, the Government
Accountability Office, or the Department's Inspector General. The
Department will inform grant recipients if and when such additional
reports are required.
Further information about how grant recipients will be expected to
comply with the reporting requirements of the Recovery Act will be
provided in the individual grant agreements signed by recipients of
TIGER Discretionary Grants.
X. Certification Requirements
As a condition of award, to the extent applicable, grantees must
comply with the Certification requirements of the Recovery Act. These
include Section 1201 (Maintenance of Effort); Section 1511
(Transparency and Oversight); and Section 1607 (Additional Funding
Distribution and Assurance of Appropriate Use of Funds). On February
27, 2009, Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood sent a letter to the
Governors of each State providing guidance and a template for the
Certifications required by the Recovery Act, a copy of which is
available on the Department's Recovery Act Web site, at http://www.dot.gov/recovery/. All applicable Certifications must be submitted
to the Department at [email protected]. Certifications may be
submitted via e-mail as electronic, scanned copies, with original
signed versions to follow via U.S. mail.
A. Section 1201(a): Maintenance of Effort
By March 19, 2009, State Governors were required to certify to the
Secretary of Transportation that the State would maintain its effort
with regard to State funding for the types of projects funded by the
appropriation, for each amount distributed to a State or a State agency
under this program. As part of this Certification, the Governor was
required to submit to the Secretary a statement identifying the amount
of funds the State planned to expend from State sources as of February
17, 2009, during the period between February 17, 2009 and September 30,
2010, for the types of projects funded by the appropriation. The
maintenance of effort requirement in section 1201(a) applies to any
TIGER Discretionary Grant recipient that is a State government (or
agency thereof) that planned, as of February 17, 2009, to expend State
funds on the project receiving a TIGER Discretionary Grant during the
period between February 17, 2009, and September 30, 2010.
B. Section 1511: Transparency and Oversight
For Grant Funds made available to State or local governments for
infrastructure investments, the Governor, mayor, or other chief
executive, as appropriate, must certify that the infrastructure
investment (1) received the full review and vetting required by law;
and (2) that the chief executive accepts responsibility that it is an
appropriate use of taxpayer dollars. This Certification must be
executed and posted on a Web site and linked to Recovery.gov prior to
the recipient of a TIGER Discretionary Grant receiving Grant Funds. If
the potential project is a highway or transit project and it is
included in the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP)
with the specific information required by Section 1511 (a description
of the investment, the estimated total cost, and the amount of ARRA
funds to be used), it may be included in the Governor's Section 1511
Certification covering highway and transit projects in a State. One way
for the Governor's Certification to satisfy the Section 1511
requirement is for the Certification to state that the project is
included in the STIP and therefore has completed the TIP/STIP planning
process. In this case, the Governor's Certification must also provide a
link to the public web posting of the STIP that includes (or will
include) any highway and transit project designated to receive Recovery
Act funding. If the project is not included in the STIP, a separate
Certification for the potential TIGER Discretionary Grant project must
be executed, attaching the relevant information or linking to a public
Web site where the information may be obtained. This Certification must
include a description of the investment, the estimated total cost, and
the amount of covered funds to be used, and must be posted online and
linked to the Web site Recovery.gov. The Certification must also state
that the projects have been properly reviewed and vetted and are an
appropriate use of taxpayer dollars.
C. Section 1607: Additional Funding Distribution and Assurance of
Appropriate Use of Funds
Section 1607 required that Governors of States receiving funding
under the Recovery Act certify by April 3, 2009, that, for Grant Funds
provided to any State or State agency, the State would request and use
the funds provided in the Recovery Act and that such funds would be
used to create jobs and promote economic growth. Alternatively, the
State legislature could have acted to accept such funds by the adoption
of a concurrent resolution. States or State agencies ultimately
receiving TIGER Discretionary Grant funds must ensure that this
Certification has been completed.
D. Submission of Certifications Under Sections 1201, 1511, and 1607
All Certifications, once executed, shall be submitted to the
Secretary of Transportation, c/o Joel Szabat, Deputy Assistant
Secretary for Transportation Policy, at [email protected].
Certifications may be submitted via e-mail as electronic, scanned
copies, with original signed versions to follow via U.S. mail. As
required by the Recovery Act, Certifications under Section 1511 shall
be immediately posted on a Web site and linked to the Web site
Recovery.gov.
XI. Questions and Clarifications
Questions about this notice should be submitted to the TIGER
Discretionary Grants program manager via e-mail at [email protected].
The Department will regularly post answers to these questions and other
important clarifications on the Department's Web site at http://www.dot.gov/recovery/ost/.
Issued on: May 12, 2009.
Ray LaHood,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E9-11542 Filed 5-15-09; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P